Connecting with the Kahls

We Have News!!!

2011-08-01T07:23:00.002-05:00

Our family is at the beginning of something exciting in our life journey. We have created a new blog, and hope you'll check it out. We'd love to have you travel the journey with us, if you so desire.

www.holding-tight.blogspot.com

See you there!

Remembering When....

2011-01-28T11:59:00.005-06:00

Remember this post: http://familykahl.blogspot.com/2008/01/happy-13108.html

It must be something about the time of the year. That post was on January 31st, and today it is January 28....and we are having a similar kind of day - with the SYMBOLS AGAIN! BANG BANG BANG BANG - over and over and over. This year though - they have electric guitars too!

I feel myself starting to twitch.....

Christmas 2010

2010-12-28T21:04:00.006-06:00

Another amazing Christmas - celebrating with family!

The festivities began with some construction.

Each unique creation, contained reflections of its individual builder. They were masterpieces.

A Ginger-Village

Cousin time, is precious time

Great Grandpa Helmer

My sweet babies (don't tell them I called them babies)

Cousin time at the Kuntz's! A great end to a great Christmas celebration!

Outside the Box

2010-10-01T08:08:00.006-05:00

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus...And my God will liberally supply (fill to the full) your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

-Philippians 4:4-7,19

Fall! Fall is a time of the year that I once treasured: the beauty in God's creation, the fun that comes along with fall activites, and the joy of eating "fall food". Over the past 6 years, it turned into a season that I have learned to dread.

BUT this fall, I am undeniably thankful and in awe of God's great provision and care. This fall marks the first year in Tyler's life that we have been free from asthmatic symptoms - symptoms that have held him back from being an everyday, carefree kid! THIS FALL Tyler is running outside playing just like every other kid, with no symptoms, during his biggest trigger season of the year. Not only is he symptom free, but we have kicked his inhaler to the curb - no inhaler since mid-spring.

And in my exuberant joy (and I truly mean EXUBERANT JOY), I stand in complete awe of God's intricate provision and care for us. In our complete lack of medical knowledge or exposure, God has led us down a path that is far outside our previous exposure and certainly outside of our "box". Certainly in our medical naivety, we could have, and some would say should have, followed the path in which we were directed by doctor #1, or doctor #2, maybe doctor and ENT specialist #3, and certainly with asthma specialist and doctor #4. All of these doctors offered reasonable treatment plans with excellent medical care. But we did not follow any of their treatment plans. At times, choosing to walk away from their plans prompted feelings of carelessness and disapproval (which I don't do so well with). But, we were reminded continusouly, that following God's lead doesn't always bring us down the path that is within our way of thinking because He holds a much bigger view of the full picture!

God knew the answer, to which I stand in thanksgiving and awe. Though doctor 1, 2,3, and 4 were extremely knowledgable in their areas of expertise, God continued to prompt our hearts that these were not the answers He had for His child, Tyler (and later Makenna as well). And each time God prompted us with a spirit of unease, He very intricately placed someone in our path that opened our eyes to a new direction - a direction much outside our knowledge base or way of thinking. A way of thinking that is outside the box, outside our previous exposure - and became the ANSWER TO A HEALTHY TYLER!

On this amazingly gorgeous fall day, I stand grateful for the way that God leads us, as we seek and follow Him. I am so grateful that He is a God that does not work inside a box, but is a HUGE God who sees the FULL picture. I am continuously humbled by the details He works together to unfold His plan for each of His children seeking Him - in which I certainly could not piece together on my own.

With my own way of thinking along this medical journey, we would certainly not be where we are now - LOVING THE BEAUTY OF FALL!

My Baby Grew Up

2010-04-25T20:14:00.003-05:00

My baby girl isn't a baby anymore!!! Saturday was her big debut - into the big girl world.

Her first dance recital wowed us. She was glowing and beautiful, and danced like there was nothing to lose. A beautiful day for a beautiful girl.

Kenna, Hannah and Adelyn are ready to take the stage

After the recital, Emerson and Kenna were ready to head home!

Kenna and Hannah joyfully greet one another before the recital

Baby or big girl - we sure do love her!!! Watch out world - here she comes!

God's Mighty Warrior

2010-04-10T07:22:00.007-05:00

There is truly nothing more exciting, than to watch our kids desire to know God in deeper ways. They have a desire to understand the Bible, and what it means for them. In their desire, we go there. We read and discuss. His word is just as real in their lives as it is in ours! How cool is that?!

And then....when they bring it full circle - into their play - it makes me smile! Childlike faith. It is pure and special - it could melt my heart.

A couple days ago, Tyler was in quest of the understanding of the Armor of God. Okey doke - to Ephesians 6:13-17 we did go.

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. -Ephesians 6:13-17

Then - he got an idea....
Why not WEAR the armor?! From the helmet, all the way to the sandals.

And here is where he rescued God's little princess. It doesn't get much better than this!

Beautiful Spunky Ballerina

2010-04-08T14:21:00.004-05:00

Sparkles and glitter. Tutus and bows. It is approaching Dance Recital time!

These 3/4 year old ballerina girls have been practicing for their moments in the limelight for months and months. Their time is finally arriving.

Though, the recital is yet to come, they already had the chance to shine like stars in a performance at the Mitchell Pancake Feed.

They shined!

She Looks Beautiful and Ready to Perform

Get Their Boogy On

This is Where Her Spunk Really Came Out - She the Tongue Sticking Out? That's Our Girl - A Beautiful Spunky Ballerina!

So Much More Than Hockey

2010-02-20T09:01:00.005-06:00

Have you ever seen termites? Tiny, but mighty! I had never actually seen any - until a couple weekends ago. Brookings, SD held the 2010 Termite Fest! You may be asking yourself, "why would ANYONE ever hold a 'Fest' for termites?"

Alright - these weren't termite bugs, they were a herd of mini-mite hockey players. Though they were "mini", they certainly were mighty! 3 different towns (Luverne, MN, Brookings, SD, and Mitchell, SD), each brought several mini-mite teams to participate in an action-packed "Termite Fest" hockey tournament.

For my friend Heidi, and I - the tournment looked like this:

2 nights + 1 room + 2 moms + 3 hockey boys = ??? (you tell me what you think)....

2 nights + 1 room + 2 moms + 3 hockey boys = so much more than hockey!

Friendship, fun, team, sharing, laughing, winning, losing, disappoints, learning, goals, playing hard, basketball, and oh so much more! Another amazing memory for the memory books - for the boys AND the 2 moms.

Game Day

2010-01-17T15:58:00.008-06:00

His adreneline was high, and his excitement was contagious! It was a day for the record books....

Tyler's First Hockey Games - 2 of them in 1 day. He processed and imagined these games for days prior. The day started with a "high energy breakfast" by request of the athlete.

Game day "high energy" breakfast consisted of oatmeal, "Power Cereal", bacon, and smoothie. At the point that it was time to EAT the breakfast, he was too nervous....and ate NONE OF IT!

Tyler and his opponent race for the puck.

Tyler (#7) and Chase (#12) are ready!

We call these three "The Three Amigos" - Tyler and his buddies Landon and Chase

Tyler (yellow mouth guard) and Chase (blue mouth guard) seem to be coming up with their own game plan on the ice.

Waiting for ice time

Kenna and Rylie had fun hanging out in the stands - while cheering on their brothers!

Tyler Dives to Protect the Mini-Mite Goal. Goalie was his favorite position to play. He did a great job making saves!

There was a lot of action on the ice. Tyler's movin' in to take that puck!

Don't ask about the score - it wasn't pretty. The Mini-Mites have A LOT to learn, but their parents could not have had more fun watching them play!!!! They worked hard, and had intense amounts of fun. And at age 5 - that's all we ask for!

Maybe they would have been better off - drivng the Zamboni!

BEAUTIFUL

2009-11-19T15:00:00.003-06:00

This is - BEAUTIFUL....

A homemade pillowcase given to me today, by a BEAUTIFUL friend. She made it perfectly beautiful, just for me. She knows my heart, she knows my style, and she knows my "color".

The pillowcase was given as a reminder to me that she is praying for me - continuously. As I lay down at night, and there is chaos in my head, I can find peace in remembering she is praying - for me. She is praying for the children and familes I interact with. She is praying for the children, around the world, that she knows my heart is drawn to.

She is part of the body of Christ - just like these children. She is serving Him, daily.

AND THAT IS BEAUTIFUL!!!

Not So Scary Halloween

2009-11-06T08:44:00.003-06:00

Halloween is supposed to be the scary, spooky celebration of the year. Our family just doesn't do scary, spooky. But...we DO DO FUN! And, fun it was!

The weather was beautiful. The costumes were adorable. The candy was good. And the cousins were here! It was a perfectly FUN Halloween Day!

The animals of the household spent some animal bonding time. Maybe it is because one of the animals is feeding the other some candy???

Here is the crew: a hip-hop policeman, a scary little lion, a Hawkeye football player, and of course a princess.

This is a classic picture what life ACTUALLY looks like!

The big cousins did pumpkins together.

Maybe I was wrong....there was a LITTLE bit of scary amongst us - YIKES!

Family Strongholds

2009-10-13T06:45:00.006-05:00

Every family has their "things". They things that drag them down a little...or a lot. These are things that tend to bring out the bad side in family members.

Strongholds - or ISSUES - are things that can pass down from generation to generation, UNLESS, a family can recognize them. Once they are recognized, the next step would be acknowledge that these things ARE issues. Finally, it would important to make steps towards working through the issues, to release them, and move onward and upward, however challenging it may be.

Yesterday, we reached step 2 - There IS an issue. One that has rooted itself into the depths of our family. This issue has started the pattern of affecting others around us...it is time to face the reality - conquer the stronghold....

The Nukkie Addiciton

We found Leo taking "hits" of this Nukkie, last night. He has been brought into a home of bad influence, and he has picked up on the habit.

The reality hit - it is time for a Nukkie Intervention. I mean come on, you know it's bad when you DOG starts participating!

Adults Can Act Crazy TOO!

2009-09-28T13:32:00.008-05:00

Do you ever think to yourself, "I'm too old to act silly. I'm too old to let loose. I'm too old to REALLY have fun"? Do you? Do you ever think that???

In the event that you believe such things - we tested it out this past Saturday. And we're here to say....IT'S NOT TRUE!!!

26 adults left their children at home with babysitters to participate in a crazy game tournament at our house. There was silliness. There was competition. There was bantering. Best of all - there was lots and lots of laughter!

The evening began with huge game of extremely funny Blind Dodge Ball:
After everyone was warmed up and the ice was broken, the crew spent the rest of the evening tracking their scores as they rotated between 4 game stations. Scores were important as the evening ended with 1 winner and 1 Winner of Losers - coveted titles, desired by all.

Wii Boxing - Sweating, punching, and even some screaming

Mad Gab - Crazy Words and Crazy Laughter

Tower Building - Objective was to build the tallest tower that could support an egg: These gals had FUN building their tower

This group built a very nice looking tower...but it definitely was NOT tall

These guys went all the way. The tallest possible!

And finally, Spoons. Intense Competition. The claws came out in this game!

Claws...
Claws....

Claws...

We have opted not to reveal the Winner or Loser of the tournament, as they would prefer to remain out of the media spotlight. You can make your own assumptions from the pictures you see above.

The night was a success. The proof was in the pudding - or - in the games. Adults CAN act silly/crazy and love every second they're doing it!

What are you going to do to let loose and have fun?!

Introducing....

2009-09-20T20:37:00.004-05:00

LEO

Leo is a Chug Dog - yep, I said "Chug" dog. You're probably wondering what exactly IS a Chug Dog?!?! Half Chihuahua/Half Pug, of course! Goofy? Yep! Adorable? Indeed! Love it!

This little Chug dog won us over at the Humane Society....and here he is. He is sweet, patient, charming, and a little goofy. A seemingly great fit for our family.

The rascals love Leo, and Leo loves them right back. The way it should be!

This pooch had an exhausting day! New family, new home, new life. Nighty night Leo. Dream sweet doggy dreams.

Life Lessons - As Learned at Pre-K

2009-09-16T13:28:00.003-05:00

1. Inclusion vs. Exclusion
There's nothing better than making games with friends on the playground. Especially games, like "Secret Agents" - with code names: "Fish", "Agent Dog", etc. The agents jobs sound important - to chase the girls. It's all fun and games. Unless.....only some kids can be the agents, and the girls don't WANT to be chased.
The playground - a key place to learn life's lessons about friendship and relationships?
The lessons we're learning - (1)it's more fun to play games, when all kids have a role with the "agents". More agents will bring more fun, more friends, and more crime fighting. (2) respect. Some girls might not view themselves as the "bad guys". They may want to be treated more as "princesses" - rescued by the brave hereoins vs. chased down by the agents.
2. Girlfriends
I guess it's never too early to have a girlfriend. Who knew.
The lessons we're learning - Spoken directly from the teacher "We need to keep our hands to ourselves". YIKES!
3. Embarrassing Moments
Wearing your shorts backwards to school....it's embarrassing.
The lesson we're learning - it's ok to laugh at yourself when you wear your shorts backwards to school. One time, mom wore two different colored shoes to work. When she laughed at herself....so did everyone else!
4. Leadership
Being the leader for the day has many perks. Leader of the line. Revealer of the weather. And much more, I am sure.
The lesson we're learning - being an leader has impact on others. The way we act and choices we make influences others....even when we wear our shorts backwards on the day we are a leader! :)

Lessons of life. They'll never stop. And for that, we are grateful. May we always find the lessons to be learned in our day to day activities. Without them, life would be boring!

Ballerina Girl

2009-09-08T19:52:00.003-05:00

With little toes ready to twitter and flit, the girl child turned into a beautiful ballerina today. The anticipation of becoming a dancer has been building inside this ballerina girl for several weeks.

Today was finally the day - the first day of dance class. Two teachers and a dance room full of three year old ballerina girls anxious to become beautiful dancing princesses.

And little funky tappers - tip tip tippety tapping tip tip tippety tapping
The first day was a smashing success. We came home and experienced every detail, as the little dancer girl re-taught the entire dance class to me and the boy child. The boy child - he just wanted to play football.
Dance on little dancer girl. Dancing makes you sparkle!

He Really Exists!

2009-09-04T13:51:00.003-05:00

All cucumber. All superhero. At our house.

It's Larry Boy!

He really does exist!

Tyler's School Debut

2009-08-24T08:44:00.005-05:00

Dear Teacher,

I am sending you my most precious possession today,
Trusting in your care what to do and say,
Be gentle and loving and encourage him too,
I'm trusting in you to know what to do,
Show him things and let him draw,
So he'll remember the things he saw,
Let him jump and run and play,
He'll tell us all about his day,
Let him do things on his own too,
But please help him when he looks up to you,
Give him a hug and smile a lot,
Memories of you will never be forgot.

A Loving Parent
By Renee H. Davis

Tyler's Excited Look - He IS READY!

This is Tyler's Hook - He Hung his Backpack There, Proudly

Tyler and Best Buddy Chase Are Ready to Tackle Pre-K - TOGETHER!

And a Little Something From Mrs. Nash for the Moms

2 Years of Mitchell Visits

2009-08-22T07:18:00.007-05:00

2 Years - we have been South Dakotans for 2 whole years! Not sure if it is the luring draw of the World's Only Corn Palace, or the need to feel the prairie breeze blow through their hair - but our 2 years in SD has drawn family and friends for some good quality visits. Serious memories and stories have been created through these visits. Some soul-warming laughter. We are extremely grateful for these times and wouldn't trade them for anything! Whatever the reason for the ventures to Mitchell - we will take 'em....we have room waiting just for YOU!

Looking back at our cast of visitors the past 2 years:

The Coalwell Family - August 2007

Molly and Laura and Kids - September 2007

The Kuntz Grandparents and Kristy and Brittney - September 2007
The Kahl Grandparents, The Knoblochs and The Thomas Family - November 2007

Laura, Molly, Allison and Kids - August 2008

The Drent Family - August 2008

The Whickers - September 2008

Uncle Nate - November 2008

Grandpa Vernie and Grandma Agnes - March 2009

Kia, Annie and Kids - April 2009

Brittney and Ginger the Dog - July 2009

The Kothes - July 2009

We have had many other day visitors, as well as additional visits from both sets of grandparents, that are not pictured, and we love them just as much.

2 years in Mitchell - wow! Time sure flies when there are fun people to share it with!

The Girl Child...

2009-08-18T13:40:00.006-05:00

Is All Girl

With A Lot of Snuggly Girl Love

With Great Girl Sas

And Sweet Girl Charm

With a Whole Lot of Little Girl Personality

Exactly the Way God Designed Her - The Girl Child

Celebrating Brittney

2009-08-12T19:36:00.003-05:00

Remember this girl....

She's the same girl that went on a date with her uncle, with curled hair, makeup - looking beautiful

She's the same girl that loves furry animals, and brought this Ginger dog to our house

She's the same girl that encourages craziness with her cousins

And loves to dress and look the same with her little cousin

She's the one that we love and miss! We sure do like her! Today, we are celebrating YOU, Brittney girl!

Crocodile Dock

2009-08-07T07:03:00.005-05:00

Where would a group of kids go to learn to shine their light for God? And, where would a group of kids go to learn to live fearlessly through the truths God has promised us?

CROCODILE DOCK!

We just came out of the Bayou after a week of Bayou adventure. We traveled with our Bayou pals Gator and Skeeter. Additionally, we ran into Moses each day and learned about the plans God had for him and the Israelites. These adventures taught us truths straight from God's word - God is With Us, God is Powerful, God Does What He Says He'll Do, God Cares for Us, and most importantly, God Gives us Life - always and forever!

God was moving and shaking at Crocodile Dock - not only in the hearts of the kids, but in the adults too. It was quite a week in the Bayou!

Crocodile Dock Set

The Volunteers - These Awesome Volunteers Served with Full and Joyful Hearts!
Setting Up Was Fun!

The Bayou Gal, Gator and Skeeter
Skeeter's Lookin' for a Birdie Friend

Skeeter Doesn't Catch a Bird, but She Goes Catch GATOR!

Kenna and Tyler with Skeeter

Teaching in the Bible Bayou - the Stories of Moses and the Israelites

Tyler Intently Listens and Learns

Summer Cruisin'

2009-07-31T06:23:00.005-05:00

There's something about going fast with the wind whipping in your hair, that feels so good! There's something about going fast, with the wind whipping in your hair - in the summer - that feels the best! Grandpa Ray knows all about it. He will rarely pass up the opportunity to drive one of his summer toys and feel his stylish silver hairdo blow in that summer breeze.

Lucky for us, Grandpa Ray has championed sharing the experience.

The Kids Each Drove the 3 Wheeler Around the Block a Couple Times

Tyler is Learning to Drive the Boat

The Rest of the Crew (and Ginger the Dog) Got Some Sun in the Back of the Boat

Aaahhhhh....summer. Feels so good!

It's All Fun and Games in Good Ole Mitch

2009-07-27T12:39:00.009-05:00

Last night, 11:30pm, we returned from our long weekend excursion in Minneapolis to this Mitchell house....our Mitchell house....

But something was not right. Aaron's car, that we had left in FRONT of the house, on THIS Mitchell street, OUR Mitchell street, was NOT in front of the house upon our return.
We left the car in front of our house, on our street, safe and sound, when we left Mitchell at 4pm on Wednesday, July 22.

At 11:30pm, on July 26, we concluded 2 options for the missing vehicle:
1. Someone decided to steal it
2. Someone towed it, as the street appeared to be refinished

As we walked up to our front door, we found this note stuck in the door:
Apparently someone placed this in our door sometime AFTER 4pm on Wednesday, July 22. Taking a closer look....
All cars were to be removed from the street by 7am on Thursday, July 23. Unfortunately the 12-15 hour notice, was not sufficient for our cicumstance - being we left out of town.

There was no note as to what happened to our car, where they took it, or how to go about finding it. That would have to be tomorrow's project.

BUT....luckily for us, at 11:35pm, as we pulled on to THIS Mitchell street:

We saw our car - the silver Saturn - in front of THIS random Mitchell house

**Please note, this was NOT our street, or our house. The street and house...completely random.**

The car did have a bright orange note:

Reading as follows:
Apparently in Mitchell, Police Tows must be similar to hide and seek. If you can find your car, you get to keep it!

Lucky us....we were the winners of this round! Good ole Mitchell. Always full of adventure!!!

The Frog and It's Subjects

2009-07-23T20:13:00.006-05:00

We found THIS absolutely adorable Tree Frog today. He was looking in at us through the window this morning. We couldn't resist spending the day with him. He found temporary housing in the bug house. We watched him spring and suction. Pretty schnazy little guy.

After we watched him for a while, it was time to take him out and give him some attention. Nothing like bringing out an amphibian to bring out some personality in people. 3 kids, 3 very different reactions:

1. Kenna LOVED Froggy. You can't tell as much here, but wanted to hold it and carry it around all the time. She was very gentle with Froggy.

2. Tyler - he liked Froggy ok. This was his only touch encounter with Froggy. After this, he just looked.

3. And Brittney....the picture says it ALL. This was an actual reaction I caught on camera.

Froggy was released back into his natural habitat this evening. We hope he had as much fun with us as we did with him!

Life on the Prairie

2009-07-18T18:10:00.009-05:00

"I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple things in life which are the real ones after all"

-Laura Ingalls Wilder

The sweet, simple things in life - like running in the open prairie, getting dirty with cousins, playing like children, exploring with our hands, learning, laughing, loving. Sweet things that we sometimes take for granted, but bring us such joy. Joy that creates and captures memories.

Through her books, Laura Ingalls Wilder has shared memories of her family's sweet, and often challenging life on the prairie in the 1800's, with the world. These books have offered great insight into that world - an insight that our family has grown to love learning more about.

With Brittney visiting, we couldn't pass up another visit to DeSmet, SD, previous home the Ingalls family, for more exploration of the 1800 prairie life. This was our first visit to the Ingalls Homestead property. It topped all our previous visits to DeSmet.

We explored the Homestead, went to the pagent, and camped on the Homestead property. We experienced full immersion into the prairie life.

These Kittens Were WELL Loved

This Old Tetter-Totter was Located Outside the School House

Inside the Chanty House - A Demonstration of Spinning Yarn - Kenna Helped

In the Shop - The Kids Made Corn Dolls, Rope, and Twisted Hay

At the Barn - They Rode Horses

A Covered Wagon Ride Took Us Out to the School House - They Allowed Each Child the Opportunity to Drive the Wagon

At the School House, the Children Dressed in Prairie Clothes, Sat in Desks, and

Were Taught by the Teacher

I wonder...what would I have been like in the 1800 prairie days? What would my story have been...what would your story have been?

Baseball Bashes

2009-07-16T21:03:00.011-05:00

This is is what a group of 10 - 5 year olds, 2 - eight year olds, and a three year look like playing tee ball....at our 5 year old's birthday party!

Tyler is 5!!! Of course...we have been doing some serious celebrating. Since we love a good celebration, we had 2 - a family party and a friend party. Tyler's passion for baseball made his summer birthday celebrations easy - baseball all the way.

We began the week celebrating with family on his actual birthday - with a picnic on Nate's rooftop and to the Twin's game. Thanks to Nate for sharing his rooftop patio with us. Thanks to the Twin's for kicking some White Sox bootie!

Then tonight....the friend party. We had a ballpark, ballpark food, and ballpark activities. Tyler loves his friends. Tyler loves his baseball. It was a perfect night.

There Was Baseball Decorating - Created by Mom

A Backyard Ballfield - Created by Dad

A Reading of Rocky the Rookie at 2nd Base

Warm Ups - Look at the Concentration of these Rookies

Of Course, There Were Baseball Cupcakes

Singing of Happy Birthday

Goody Bags for All

Thanks Friends for a Fun Night

The family party started at Nate's Rooftop Patio. It was a perfect location, a few blocks from the Metrodome.

We Enjoyed a Picnic on a Beautiful Day

More Baseball Cake - This Time a Baseball Cap and Ball

Then to the Game to Watch the Twins Beat the White Sox 13-5

To Top Off - The Kids Got to Run the Bases After the Game

At age 5, Tyler is full of passion, heart, enthusiasm, care, and love for his friends and family. He has learned to be a great friend, a caring big brother, and a loving son. I can't wait to see what the next 5 years brings to our lives with him in it! Happy Birthday, Ty -Do!

Little Gymnast

2009-07-15T12:44:00.003-05:00

When did our baby girl get so big? She takes her own classes, does her own activities, and makes her own little friends.

She LOVES her gymnastics class!!! It is especially fun for her because she spent an entire year watching her brother get to go, but she wasn't old enough yet. Now she is...and it is her very own. It doesn't hurt that she looks pretty cute in her little leotard.

Well Rounded

2009-07-08T12:36:00.002-05:00

Those of you that think the Kahl and Thomas children don't have a shot at becoming anything except athletes, need to watch the below video. It's official - these kids are well rounded!

4th of July in Small Town USA

2009-07-06T07:43:00.005-05:00

There are many things that small town America does well. Admidst these things done well, I think one of very best is - the 4th of July.

Inwood, IA is one of these small towns. The 4th in Inwood is a true celebration, a coming together to acknowledge and share in what makes our country great. Celebrating with the people of Inwood is our family's tradition, and has also become the tradition of some of our friends. It is a tradition we look forward to every year.

As kids are starting to get a little older, and more kids are added to the mix, the 4th develops a whole new excitement and wonder. It was sad to say goodbye to friends and family after such a fun weekend. We are grateful for such fun times of memory-making.

A few pics to recap the weekend:

Tyler, Kenna and Luke Thomas at the Inwood Parade

(we waited a long time in the rain...but it sure was fun)

Kenna, Tyler and Sophia Whitney at the Parade

The Whole Group of Friends (less Elise, Ben and Jacob) after the Fireworks

Luke Loved Throwing Rocks in the Puddle at the Haugland Farm

Sprinkler Fun on the 5th

Tyler and Kenna Cheering on Luke as He Takes the Plunge through the Sprinkler..GO LUKEY!

The Tree Ate the Golf Ball - Luke, Kenna and Tyler Looking for the Ball (many hours were spent running and playing in Grandma and Grandpa Kahl's big yard)

This is One of My Favorites....it says, "Hey Get me out of this Pen of LITTLE Kids"

A Trip Complete

2009-06-29T20:04:00.002-05:00

12 States + 8 Stops + Family and Friends = Awesome Trek to the East

The Last Leg

2009-06-28T22:06:00.004-05:00

We just got home - back to Mitchell - 2 hours ago - Sunday, June 28. We said "so long beach" on Friday, June 26 and started our trek back to the midwest. We were sad to say goodbye to the beach life. We molded right into the beach bum lifestyle. The rest of our time looked a little like this:

Walks on the beach

Cousin Play Time

Sand Castles

Boogie Boards

St. Louis Arch

And finally...our final destination - back to the land of the World's Only Corn Palace

Now, it's back to reality. Can't be beach bums forever...

Little Mermaid

2009-06-23T12:27:00.003-05:00

We have our very own mermaid. She was made for the water!

The Beach The Beach The Beach

2009-06-22T13:08:00.004-05:00

We're here, and we're lovin it up. Let's see....what have we done so far:

1. A little pool time

2. A little beach time

3. Eat

4. Sleep

5. A little more pool time

6. A little more beach time

7. etc. etc. etc.

It's a rough life, but, well...what do ya do?

Asheville and Raleigh/Durham

2009-06-19T20:38:00.007-05:00

Yesterday was another memory-making day. We enjoyed the day together just as our little family - exploring and having fun together. Our day looked like this:

Asheville, NC - Hotel
A Family Project, mapping out our travels and who we have stopped to visit. Yeah for Walgreens 1 hour photo. I electronically sent the pictures over to the Walgreens in Asheville, and we picked them up after we were done with dinner.

Asheville, NC - North Carolina Arboretum

We hiked 2.5 miles of mountain trails together, exploring, picking up walking sticks, finding treasures in God's creation. These trails link up with the Apalachian Trail...they were awesome. I think the kids are ready for the Boundary Waters... :)

Durham, NC - Duke University

What a campus! We think we have Tyler convinced to work hard enough to come here! HA HA! The definite highlight of the campus visit - was that all the athletic facilities were open, so we were able to go inside the basketball arena, football stadium, tennis facilities, etc. Pretty exciting!!!
And Aaron even got to shoot some baskets on the Duke's home court - close to the ultimate of excitments (the ultimate would be on the Hawkeye court)

Today, we meet up with the rest of the Kahl/Knobloch crew, and it's off to the beach. We're looking forward to another week of memory-making.

Indianapolis

2009-06-18T19:59:00.003-05:00

The journey east continues. Stop #3, Indianapolis, IN for a rip-roaring time spent with my Aunt Robin and Lauri. They hosted spectacularly - as always. We ate scrumptious food, and spent fun time together hanging out.

We toured the Lucas Oil Field - home of the Indianapolis Colts

Kenna "drove" the Lucas Oil machine thingy

Lauri helped the kids wash their hands before we prepared the food, since they spent the evening crawling in and out of the doggy door

Robin helped the kids each make their own individual pizzas

Thanks to my Aunt Robin and Lauri for hosting us! We loved our time with you!

And We're Off

2009-06-17T12:15:00.005-05:00

Packed in and ready to roll - we're off on a cross country adventure....

The kids are ready and anxious - let's get this vehicle rollin'

Chicago - visiting my Grandma! SO fun to spend time with her!

We're having too much fun, and we're not even to the beach yet!!!! Keep the adventure rolling...

Party Pinkaliciously

2009-06-14T08:14:00.006-05:00

Have you ever partied Pinkaliciously? Do you even know HOW to party Pinkaliciously??? We didn't either...until.......yesterday! After experiencing our first Pinkalicious Party extravanganza, we have developed a list of 6 key components to enjoying an extra fun, super pink, Pinkaliciously exciting party:

1. A 3 Year Old Girl's Favorite Book - Pinkalicious

2. A Pinkalicious 3 Year Old Birthday Girl

3. Pinkalicious Decorating

4. The Reason for Pinkalicious - The Pinkalicious Cupcakes

5. Pinkalicious Birthday Singing and Candle Blowing

6. And Most Importantly....An Awesome Group of Pinkalicious Party Guests

***Below are a few Guests of Note***

The Knoblochs were "Best Dressed"...All Sporting "Adorable" Pink Attire

These 3 Guys - Their Pink Attire Helped Them to Feel the Pinkalicious "Love"

Psalm 46:10

2009-06-05T07:07:00.005-05:00

Be Still and Know that I am God...

How often do we actually take time to "be still", slow down, and rest in God's goodness? I know for us it is - rarely - especially with young kids. Life seems to constantly go go go, and we tend to go with it.

Then there was an opportunity presented to us to spend some time "being still" at the Moreau River Sanctuary, near Isabelle, SD. Amazing! We were blessed! We shared in an amazing weekend of "stillness" together with: four families, eight young kids, lots of hunting guns and fishing poles, too much food, one BEAUTIFUL Sanctuary, and one Amazing God.

There is something about being in the beauty of God's creation that brings renewal and reflection to my soul. And fellowship....oooo....love fellowship!

There are a lot of pictures below, but it will give you a peek into what the Sanctuary was all about:

The Sanctuary

Catching Toads

Poor Toad Got Held by Almost All the Kids

Playing Games

Playing with Rocks

Hangin' With Friends

Fishing

Playing Baseball

All While Enjoying This View of God's Creation

60 Years of Life's Adventure!!!

2009-06-01T07:46:00.004-05:00

May 26, 2009 marked 60 years of life's adventure for my mom! Happy Birthday, Mama!!! We were excited to celebrate together as a family, here in Mitchell. We celebrated mom-style: together as a family, low key, with a few fun activities.

Our activities included a family portrait session. It was a lot of fun, and we are really hoping to come away with some great family pics. We can't wait to see the result in a couple weeks.

Additionally, we went the Butterfly House, went to a Dam and looked around, grilled out, and played a little backyard baseball.

Thanks for sharing your 60th birthday weekend with us, Mom!

Pinkalicious

2009-05-22T16:19:00.005-05:00

Most of you know that Kenna loves the book Pinkalicious....all about a little girl who turns pink from eating too many pink cupcakes.

Well....this afternoon, Kenna took her love for Pinkalicious to a whole new level - she turned herself pink! I was out of the room vacuuming, when I was done, I found Miss Pinkalicious herself!!!

When I told her that we need to get right into the shower, she responded with, "But, I want to be PINK!". I then told her she can't be pink because we have family pictures tomorrow. Her response, "well, can I be pink for my Pinkalicious birthday party???"

And finally, as I was getting her undressed for her shower, she looked down at her very pink little self, and said, "BEAUTIFUL!"

Oh boy....

A Restaurant and Hotel

2009-05-07T06:54:00.008-05:00

From the title, you may think we had a little weekend get away or took a trip. Though we are looking forward to that in the not-so-distant future, it is not the case at this current point in time.

Over the past few weeks, we have enjoyed offering our home as the Restaurant and Hotel - if you can really call it that! :)
Restaurant
On a Sunday evening in April, we formally opened Restaurante Kahl. The dining guests were served by our fine wait staff, hired special for this opening. Though trained ahead of time, there are still some service kinks that will need to be worked out - a.k.a stealing food off the guests plates while serving. This well rounded staff not only served, but also assisted in meal preparation, and eventually in guest entertainment, later in the evening. We thank our "guinea pig" guests for braving this kickoff evening of Restaurante Kahl. Pictures of the event can be viewed below.
Hotel
Over the first weekend in May, we kicked off the 2nd phase of Kahl Guest Services, and opened the Hotel portion of our establishment. The guests to the hotel traveled all the way from Minneapolis, MN. Our belief is that Hotel Kahl proved to be a family friendly environment, offering a variety of enjoyable indoor and outdoor activities for these two families and their young children. Additionally, being located in Mitchell, SD, Hotel Kahl provides 10 minutes of enjoyment and awe with direct access to the WORLD's ONLY CORN PALACE!!! Pictures of the Hotel's opening can be viewed below.

We hope to see you join us at Restaurante Kahl and Hotel Kahl. Reservations are required.

Restaurante Kahl

Hotel Kahl

How to KNOW You've Had an Eventful Day

2009-04-16T20:53:00.003-05:00

This week I started pondering....what does an eventful day really look like? As I processed through how one would determine what constitutes an eventful day, I decided it all lies in the amount of outfits one would wear in a day. The more outfits would seem to mean the more events.

Join me now on a recap of my journey of outfits on this day, April 16, 2009:

1. 8:30am - outfit #1 - thought to be the only outfit for the day
2. 12pm - outfit #2 - change needed due to Tyler rubbing his pizza face all over my pants
3. 2:30 pm - outfit #3 - change needed due to Kenna's poo pants leaking on my leg at dr. visit #3 of the week
4. 2:45pm - outfit #4 - change needed due to Kenna's projectile vomit after getting back in the car to head for IV fluids
5. 6pm - outfit #5 - change needed due to blood stain on left leg from IV spray and poo stain #2 on right leg from poo leak #2 of the day
6. 8pm - TIME FOR JAMMIES....I don't have anymore clean clothes and I'm plum tuckered out!

It's official....this WAS an EVENTFUL day!

Here's Miss Makenna. She is the one that has really had the eventful day/week. She has been sick with a kidney infection that has been kicking her butt. We finally went in for IV drips and IV meds today. She is now in the vertical position instead of horizontal which is a great improvement. We hope to see continued improvement tomorrow. Her IV remains in her arm until tomorrow (as seen above), when they will evaluate her condition and determine if we're all clear!

Spring - Has It Sprung?

2009-04-13T15:31:00.007-05:00

This year, more than most, it seems as though Spring it taking a REALLY LONG TIME to get here. The blizzards keep coming, the cold lingers on, and our energy level is sluggish. But, alas, the flowers are peeking up from under the ground, the grass is beginning to turn green and today - the sun is shining!!! Could it be true...has spring, sprung?

With spring, comes the excitement of the celebration of Easter. The ultimate celebration. The reason we have hope. The celebration of Christ's ultimate sacrafice, and rising from the grave - for us. I am truly amazed of His love and provision for us - daily. An unimginable blessing that pours out in my life over and over day after day.

We were grateful to share in Easter blessings with my family this weekend - and of course - we hunted for Easter Eggs - 2 times! Fun abound! Here's the recap:

These are some sassy chics!
Grandpa and Grandma with the Grandkids

A Fun Family Soccer Game

Tyler and Brit in their Easter Duds

Cute Cousins before New Hope Church Egg Hunt

Little Spunky is ready to hunt for eggs

A Wedding Weekend

2009-01-11T14:30:00.005-06:00

Little Man Tyler, had the chance to be a big man this weekend - and he loved every second of it. He had the awesome privilege of serving as ring bearer in cousin Mary and Greg's wedding! Aaron served as the ring bearer in Mary's parents wedding, back when Aaron was about Tyler's age.

Yesterday's wedding was beautiful. We were sad to see Mary get sick, part way through the reception, and have to leave. But they were blessed to share in an amazing ceremony together, and start their life as husband and wife, surrounded by many family and friends that love and adore them!

The Ring Bearer - Lookin Stylish

The Bride and Groom with the Little People

Tyler with Grandpa Vernie and Grandma Agnes

Tyler with Great Aunt Kristi
Tyler Adored the Flower Girl
Hangin out Before the Wedding

Spreadin' the Christmas Love

2008-12-30T12:50:00.009-06:00

That Christmas love that you see above....that was real Christmas love shared over and over and over during our Christmas festivitives! It was an amazing Christmas. We are so blessed by our families. Most of all though, we are blessed to be loved by Christ - the reason we celebrate this awesome season! His love and grace fill our hearts and souls beyond our comprehension. What a truly amazing gift. We are so blessed!

Look what I found in my parent's basement!!! It's my ski pants and coat from jr. high. Don't I look like hot stuff?!!! Still kept me dry while I played outside - I can handle embarrassing colorfullness in front of the neighbors, if it means I get to play outside with the fam!!!
And, here is what I got to do while wearing the "Hot Suit" - Frosty loved me for who I was, even if I was stuck in the 90's!

The Month in Review

2008-12-17T13:33:00.003-06:00

It has been a little over a month since I last posted, and as always, we have been busy with all sorts of fun stuff! There have been basketball games galore, 4 birthday parties, Thanksgiving, a trip to Minneapolis, Top Gun, Meals on Wheels, and a Tonsilectomy/Adneoidectomy with ear tubes inserted - to top it all off!

Life doesn't seem to get dull for this Kahl family, that is FOR SURE! All of our experiences and adventures seem to bring more personality growth to the little rascals we call Tyler and Kenna. It has been fun to watch as it all plays out. Their little personalities just really shine.

Tyler - definitely has the first child need to be in charge and right most of the time. He makes up games, and wants everyone to play them. He is very creative, and also very analytical. His tender heart shines with care and love for others. He loves his little buddies, and they have a grand ole' time rippin' around together!

Kenna - SPUNK SPUNK SPUNK. This girl knows what she wants, and is not afraid to let others know as well. At the same time, she is such a LOVER. She can melt a person's heart in about 2 seconds with her hugs and snuggles. She is nurturing - loving her babies, and taking care of her brother when he is down.

Together - they love one another. Yes, they fight often enough. But, they also miss each other when they are away from one another. They are concerned when the other is hurt or sad, and they love to hold hands and help each other out....melts a mommy's heart!!!

Admidst the fun activities in life, it is fun to have the chance to step back and watch these two little people grow into their own. And I know, every year will bring more and more of that.

Here's a few pics to recap our past month's life experiences:

Meals on Wheels - Tyler, Kenna and I had the opportunity to deliver for 1 week. A top highlight of our month, for sure!

Thanksgiving - Kenna sharing snuggles with Uncle Nate.

Top Gun - Tyler and Grandpa Ray LOVE to play Top Gun together

Ben turns 2! It was so much fun to help him celebrate his big day.

He loves being 2...just ask Elise!

Miss Makenna...we are discovering that she LOVES to color. Obviously, she also loves to be super silly.

Mickey and Friends

2008-11-05T14:29:00.005-06:00

We just got back from an action-packed week of excitement with Mickey and Friends, in Disney World. Grandma and Grandpa Kuntz, along with Kritter and Brittney traveled with Tyler, Makenna, and myself to Florida. We enjoyed three Disney Parks, a Character Breakfast, and Downtown Disney. Kenna wasn’t sure what she thought of those crazy characters, but she LOVED the princesses and Cinderella’s castle. She thought they were amazing. Tyler’s favorite part was when Grandpa Ray would blast him off like a rocket ship in the umbrella stroller. Should have made that a Disney ride.

We were lucky to have the chance to hang out with my Aunt Robin and Lauri, as they vacationed in FL as well. They even came to one of Aaron’s games. Yeah…it was so great to see and hang out with them!

Aaron came with his basketball team a couple days later. They played two great games…came away with two wins. It was a great way to start the season. We were excited to be able to be there to cheer them on!!!

Magic Kingdom, here we come!

Grandma, Grandpa, and Tyler on the Monorail

Lots and lots of Characters!

Me, just being Me

A Little Ice Cream for the Girls

Lauri and Aunt Robin

Aaron in action

Fall Updates

2008-10-22T06:10:00.004-05:00

We love fall!!! There are so many fun things going on in the fall - football, volleyball and soccer games, apple picking, activities starting up, trees changing into beautiful colors, and the weather is amazing!

A couple weeks ago, we enjoyed the visit of some great friends - the Whickers. We were able to participate in a few fun fall activities together with the Whickers. It was a blast, and we were so blessed to have them come visit us!

Tyler is old enough to start in on some activities of his own this fall. He started taking a tumbling class - which he LOVES, and started going to AWANA, a Wednesday night church activity. It is so much fun to watch him in his classes - I can hardly believe he is old enough....

As a family, we went apple picking...love apple picking! Unfortunately, my camera ran out of battery right when we got there, so I have no pictures. Next year!

Here are a few pictures of some of our fall events, thus far. There's still a lot of fall left...stay tuned for more fall fun!

Tyler and Isaac are suited up for a game of football

Go Vikes! Go Hawks!

The Whicker Kids and Kahl Kids picking out some pumpkins at a SD farm

Tyler's tumbling class

Wow - look at that form! ;)

Tyler walking the rainbow beam

Great job, buddy!

Running a Little Behind

2008-10-02T06:00:00.006-05:00

Life is cruising by so fast, but with so many fun adventures! We have had the chance to do a lot of exciting things and spend time with a lot of awesome people in the last few months. Here are a few pictures to recap our events, which have literally occurred back to back to back to back....

An awesome visit to Mitchell from our good friends, the Drents!

Then off to MN for the MN State Fair with the Kuntz's

Then to Sioux Falls for Amazing Music at Life Light Christian Music Festival

**Kenna broke her collar bone in this spot, but we won't picture it, it's already a faded memory in our minds!**

Next....a Great Day with the Entire Kahl Clan, Celebrating Grandma Agnes' 90th Birthday!

And....a Fun-Filled Trip to the Black Hills with Grandma and Grandpa Kahl

There are more adventures ahead, and we can't wait! I will try to be better at updating the blog! Thanks for journeying life with us!

A Weekend to Remember

2008-08-11T14:21:00.010-05:00

What happens when you put 6 kids (ages 4 and under) + 4 mommies in one house for 4.5 days????

Memories memories memories!!!!

We sure missed our friend Mackenzie and new baby Norse, and really hope that they can join us on the next action packed time together!

To see some highlights of the memories we built this weekend, see below...

Quotes of note:

Tyler, Kenna and Peter to Matthias - "Matthias wears diapers - Matthias wears diapers - Matthias wears diapers!!!!!" over and over and over

Tyler to all "BUT, only at night guys"

***Funniest part - Makenna and Peter have diapers too***

Matthias to the diaper taunting threesome - "Guys, give me some PRVIATES!"

Allison to Matthias - "Do you mean Pri-vacy?"
Matthias to the diaper taunting threesome - "OH - GUYS, give me some PRI-VACY!"

Tyler to Laura - "Is Annie 4 and a half?"

Laura to Tyler - "No, she is only 4."

Tyler to Laura - "Oh, because she is really tall"

Allison to Mommies (after we saw the American gymnastics team how another big error - "SEE...this is why I HATE the Olympics!"

Molly to Mommies (after we saw the American men's 4x100 Swim Team Win the Gold - "SEE...this is why I LOVE the Olympics!"

Molly, Allison and Laura to Amy (They are all in the living room watching TV and I am in the kitchen getting dinner ready) - "Amy, where is the black remote?"

Amy to Molly, Allison and Laura - "Um.....I don't know"

What I am really thinking, "I'm not coming in there to find the remotes for you lazy bums. Get off the couch and find it yourself!"

Me at 6am this morning (after running face first/SMACK into her CLOSED bedroom door because my eyes were still closed) - "AGH! UGFH! SLDIEHSL!!!@ EEEE!!"

Oh, I could go on and on, but it's probably not as funny to you, as it is to us!

A Glimpse Into the Chaos

2008-08-09T07:31:00.006-05:00

With 4 Moms and 6 kids ages 4 and under in our house right now, there is bound to be an extreme amount of chaos.

A little video below, to give you a window into how our weekend has started....more to come!

Quotes of Note:

Annie - spoken to Tyler and Matthias, "And, I am NOT playing football this time!"
Annie to Tyler and Matthias (while the boys were playing football guys) - "I will give a prize to the person who can play the quietest!"

Matthias - to Amy - "Tyler broke my heart" (after having his feelings hurt by Tyler).
Matthias to Makenna - "Tyler broke my heart, but then Jesus fixed it."

Tyler to Matthias (as Matthias tagged Tyler in their game of tag) - "It doesn't matter if you tagged me, because I am four. I am older than you!"
Tyler to all the kids, except Annie - "How old are you? I'm four. I'm older than you!"

***And finally....the mommy comment of the day, "Would you like an egg, some cereal, our should I just throw up?!"***

Birthdays

2008-08-02T06:50:00.007-05:00

The summer is becoming quite the busy birthday time for the Kahls. So much fun summer celebrating to do!!! I have not posted about the most recent Kahl summer birthday celebrations, so I thought I better do that. A new summer baby, and Tyler turned 4!

First off, we want to welcome our new baby cousin, Jacob, into the world! He is cute as a little button, and we love him already. Ben is going to be a great big brother to this little bundle! We are excited to watch Jacob grow into the little person God has intended him to be!!! Welcome, baby Jacob!!!

This year marked the first year for kid birthday parties at our house. Tyler had seven little friends plus one cousin here to celebrate with him. We went with the Pirate Theme, requested by the birthday boy himself. The kids dug for buried treasure in the sand box, went on a treasure hunt to find the hidden loot around our house, decorated their own loot bags, and chose their own treasure out of the treasure box. All in all, I think we had a great first kid party.

Later that afternoon, grandmas and grandpas, aunts, uncle and cousins came over to celebrate for Pirate Party #2 of the day. Another great time! A day doesn't get much better than having birthday cake 2 times the same day!

Here are a few pictures to recap the birthday events.

Presenting....Baby Jacob

With their new cousin

This is the best I could get with all four of them!

The Pirate Birthday Boy with his Treasure Chest

Kid Party - Ready for some Fun

Kid Party - Digging for buried treasure

Some Scary Pirates showed up that day!

Cousin Pirates (and an Uncle)

And of course....a Pirate Cake

Abdalah

2008-07-30T13:37:00.003-05:00

Little Abdalah. He stole my heart! I think of him continuously throughout my day....and so do my kids. Tyler and Kenna have not yet met him face to face, but he has already found a place into their hearts as well. Tyler asks questions about him all throughout our day, and he tells others about him. I cannot wait for the day that we can all go to visit him together.

I pray that others that I know and love can experience the joy and blessing that I have, through sponsoring Abdalah.

Someone from our team captured our meeting in full. I have posted all the pictures below. It was such an emotional time.

John Michael is explaining to Abdalah, that I have chosen to sponsor him

Once he understood, he LEAPT into my arms, holding on so tight (this is where the tears started flowing)

WOW - he just held on, and so did I!!!

What a precious little man, with a precious little heart

Uganda

2008-07-16T05:58:00.033-05:00

How do I even begin to put my trip to Uganda into words? I am not sure, but I hope to be able to give you a small glimpse into the life-changing experience it was. I could share the stories of desparation with you, for hours. And then, for another few hours, I could share with you the signs and promises of God's Hope, Love, and Mercy - how He is working in the hearts and lives of the people there, and how He needs our help to continue to share and spread His hope, love

and promises to even more people. BUT, this is only a blog, and you don't have hours. So, I will try to condense, and share with you 3 points most prominent in my mind:

Crisis - These are people and a nation in utter crisis. More than I have ever experienced. Northern Uganda is victim of 20 years of civil war, followed by years of attacks by a rebel army, the LRA. Thousands of people have been killed, villages completely raided and destroyed, the children kidnapped and raped. The adults killed. Children becoming pregnant. HIV and AIDS spreading intensely and quickly. The people fled their villages and lived in government provided IDP camps. Thousands within one camp, with huts so close together they practically touch. No money, no families, NO HOPE. There are more orphans, raising their own siblings, than we can even start to think of. There is no one to protect these children, to take care of them, to nurture them. They are left to fend for themselves. Their parents have HIV and AIDS, many of the children do as well. These people are people just like us. They have emotions just like us. They feel pain just as we do. Who will care for them, teach them, love them? How will they learn to be the next generation to lead their nation with no one around to teach them? How will they learn to have families and love their own children? It could seem so overwhelming.

Hope - As we were flying to Uganda, I was feeling very overwhelmed by the situation we were headed toward. But, as I was reading and praying, God spoke LOUD AND CLEAR to me....there is HOPE. HE IS HOPE. HE is BIGGER than any person, any problem, any disease, any war. He is LIFE. He is GRACE. He is FORGIVENESS. HE IS GOD. He is the same God that we serve in America. He is ALL POWERFUL - beyond our wildest imagination. AND, the Ugandan people do not need our pity, our saddness. They need hope, they need love, they need help, they need Christ.

Though it seems that there are too many Ugandan people suffering to even know where to begin, God revealed to me that "It just takes One". We do not need to change the entire nation ourselves. That is not our job. We need to share God's love and hope with just the people that we encounter. Through the change of heart of just one person, God can use that person to affect others. God can move the mountains. An example of this was seen in a group of 5 teenage orphans there were rescued by one of our partners, John Michael. These orphans now want to be work for the ministry, become pastors, and start theif own ministries. Just a few. Share the hope and love, God will work the miracles.

Sponsorship - I cannot even start writing this, without crying. As I sit here, the tears are rolling down my face. I did not fully understand the sheer importance of child sponsorship until this trip. The number of orphans is countless. They have lost their families to war and AIDS. and disease. Many have HIV themselves. In a country with little to no money, the government does not pay for these children to have homes, not even in the orphanage. In order for children to stay, be fed, schooled, and receive any medical care, they NEED to have a sponsor.

It was at Destiny Children's Center that God nudged me toward sponsorship. We watched these amazing 900 children praise God with all of their hearts and souls. John Michael provides an awesome home, life, education, and faith nurturing for these children. BUT, they still cannot be provided for without sponsorship. I looked through our bio cards that we had with us, pulling a few kids that I thought Tyler and Makenna would connect with, when seeing the child's picture.

I was drawn to Abdalah. Abdalah's bio said that he lost his father to AIDS, and his mother was soon to die of AIDS as well. AND, Abdalah was infected with HIV. Without sponsorship, he would not receive any treatments or medicines. HE was the one.

John Michael called him out of the crowd of children. John Michael began to explain to Abdalah, that I have chosen to sponsor him, I crouched down by him. At the moment that Abdalah understood who I was, he LEAPT into my arms, flung his arms around me, and held on with ALL OF HIS MIGHT. I could not contain my emotions, and all around were crying as well. It was so intensely amazing. Abdalah and I spent the rest of the afternoon together - hand in hand. He showed me his bed, and we just sat and loved each other. He stole my heart. I pray that he can experience of glimpse of God's love through our family, a glimpse of God's goodness, of glimpse of God's mercy for his life.

Thank you to all of you for your support - financial and prayers. I am so grateful to you! My heart and life is forever changed. God broke my heart for the people of Uganda.

There is so much more that I could share with you, but this is already long enough! I will end by sharing the below pictures. Here too, I could share so many more, but I will try to pick some of my favorites.

This is Abdalah - Isn't He Wonderful?!

This is the HIV Moms Support Group

This Group of Boys Climbed a Tree to Bring Me this Jackfruit That They are Holding

Why Can't We Do This?

IDP Camp

Pastor Patrick - Just One of the Amazing Ugandan Partners We Worked Alongside

Ugandan Children

This is Hope - She is the the Seamstress Class at the Vocational Center - I LOVE Her

Ugandan Baby

Oh, Lunch - Beans and Corn Meal - Eaten with our Fingers

Bye Bye Mzungu

Why Me?

2008-06-29T12:23:00.011-05:00

This week has been a busy one - Vacation Bible School at Church, packing the kids for two weeks away, and packing and preparing myself for two weeks away in Uganda. During all of the craziness of the week, I have spent a lot of time processing and preparing my mind and heart for my trip.

As I have processed through my week, I have come to this....Why Me?!

1. Why has God gifted ME with the gifts that I have been blessed with?
2. Why have I come to this place in my life that I feel led to take the plunges that I feel called to take?
3. Who am I to follow some of the leads that I follow?
4. Why, when I know I have been blessed with gifts, do I often times still abuse them?
5. Why, when I know I have been blessed with gifts, do I often times still doubt them?

I feel so unworthy of His Awesomeness - His Amazing Blessings. Yet, through all of the questions and processing, I think the greastest gift I have been blessed with, is constant faith. God is always there, and He always knows best. He is always true, He is always constant. He will always guide me - it is MY choice whether or not to follow!!!

God does not call the equipped....He equips the called. I just have to follow His lead.

I am TRULY in awe of His Goodness, His Faithfulness....truly. I am so grateful for the adventure of life, for the places that He takes me....for the ride! It is an amazing privilege to me that even though I sometimes question or doubt who God created ME to be, He will NEVER leave me or forsake me.

Hold on to your hat, Amy Kahl, next stop on this great adventure.....Uganda, Africa!!!

If you feel led to pray for me while I am gone, here are some specific requests:

1. That God will effectively use me to bring the message of His goodness and mercy to the Ugandans that I encounter
2. That my heart will be fully open and willing to be used the way GOD has planned to use me while I am there
3. That I will be open and listening for God's lead
4. For my family that I am leaving behind
5. For team dynamics
6. For the preparation of the hearts and minds of the Ugandan people
7. For safe travel - to and from

Our Big Back Yard

2008-06-28T08:28:00.007-05:00

We have really been enjoying our yard this spring/summer. The kids and I have even planted a vegetable garden that is growing like gang-busters! We are starting to be able to see the signs of the vegetables growing from the plants. YAHOO! We have been working hard, and are hoping for great results! Who would have thunk that this city girl could grow a garden?!

I am a little nervous about the potential state of the garden after being away for two weeks. So, I have decided to give you a glimpse of it now, in the event that it is struggling after my return.

Please join me on a tour of, Tour de Garden Kahl:

Welcome to our Back Yard

Entering the Back Yard

Love These Flowers

Full-View of the Garden - Against the Back Fence

Rhubarb and Cucumbers

Jalepenos

Watermeleon - SD is supposed to be the Watermeleon Capital of the U.S.

Garlic and Tomatoes

Pumpkins and Rose Bush

Onions

Sunflowers to Line the Back of the Fence

And Finally....Our Baby Birds. They're Red Finches - So Cute!

She's 2

2008-06-01T20:42:00.009-05:00

Kenna Belle is 2 - well, not really until June 3rd - she doesn't know that though, so in our world the birthday party marked her 2 year birthday! Grandmas and Grandpas and Aunts, Uncle, Cousins, and Travis Dahlke were all there to celebrate Miss Makenna's fun day.

This little girl brings so much spunk, love and life into our world. We have been so blessed by her, and she's only been here for 2 years. We cannot wait to see what more she brings to the lives of those around her in the future.

Thanks to our families and Trav for celebrating with us - Fishy Style!

Our 2 Year Old Girl

Grandmas Enjoying the Piggy Tails

Giggling with Cousin Brittney

Hammock Hog Pile on Auntie Elise

Fish Cake for the Fishy Birthday Party

Blowing Out the Birthday Candles

Watching "Kenna" Fish with Grandpa Ray

Boy Dancing

2008-05-05T09:11:00.003-05:00

Our next adventure over the weekend was Aaron's cousin's wedding, in Iowa City, IA. The wedding was beautiful! The bride and groom were glowing, and the dancing was just what we had hoped for!

Tyler had been practicing his "boy dancing" all week. He couldn't even eat dinner because he was so excited to get on that dance floor.

Here is the video, you have all been waiting to see.....Tyler's Debut....

Slip Slidin'

2008-05-05T08:30:00.005-05:00

Yahoo!!! Yippy!!! Wwwweeeeee!!!! Those words were frequent out of our mouths this past weekend, during one of our weekend adventures at Kalahari Waterpark and Resort with Grandma and Grandpa Kahl, Uncle Nate, Uncle Geoff, Aunt Elise, and Cousin Ben.

We had a blast! I left Kalahari with some of the memories imprinted on my bottom - ouch - but it was sooooo worth it! The kids were flying down water slides and loving every minutes....and so were the adults!

Ready to go down to the waterpark

Having fun splashing

Ben hanging out in the water

This girl is fearless in the water

Tyler went down this slide over and over and over and over

This was the kids' favorie "fast slide"

Kenna rode this one with her arms up in the air - all the way from the top, down to the bottom

Friends - We Love 'Em

2008-04-24T07:31:00.003-05:00

We LOVE spending time with our friends, and we're blessed to have such great ones. We had a very fun visit from the Thomas family a couple weekends ago. We were charmed by "little" Lukey's silly personality. The kids had a great time playing together and loving on each other.

Other the past month or so, we have had a couple other friend activities, pictured below as well!

We love Lukey!!!

Kenna loves Lukey's toys!

Having a blast with Kallen - in the bathtub!!!

Tyler and his good buddy, Caleb

Turning 30 is FUN!

2008-04-22T19:38:00.011-05:00

Just today, Aaron and I returned from Aaron's 30th birthday present to me - a trip to Philedelphia and New York! What a great gift. It was just the two of us, and we had a blast!!!!

We spent the entire trip using only public transportation. We shared in a lot of adventure, saw a lot of things, walked a ton, saw a couple shows, and ate amazing food!!!

Below, are just a few of our pictures to share with you. If you are interested in hearing more about the Chinese bus transit, our China town adventure, or the time I thought I was going to be stuck in an automatic door forever, just give us a call or email. We would love to share our stories!

Ground Zero

Ground Zero - Ladder 10

Ground Zero - Chapel

Lady Liberty

Central Park Carriage Ride

Times Square

Wicked @ the Gershwin Theater

Out on the town - after our show

Liberty Bell

City of Love - Philedelphia

City View - Philedelphia

Segway Tour - Our Italian Friends

Later Gators

2008-04-01T16:10:00.004-05:00

Yesterday, Tyler said "See ya later, gators" to his pesky tonsils and adenoids. Aaron and I had more of a response of, "good ridence!" We were glad to see them go!!!

Tyler was a superstar throughout the process. Even his nurse was impressed with his rapid recovery. He was eating and drinking like a champion within a couple hours. While at the hospital, he ate a plateful of potatoes, some fruit, 3 cups of ice cream, and 1/2 a popsicle. He continued the great trend after we went home, as well.

We were allowed to leave the hospital by 2:30 in the afternoon, and Tyler was glad to be free and in his own clothes again. Below you can see some pictures of the big day.

Great job, Tyler!!! You were so brave!!!

Tyler and Bear, admitted to the hospital

In his hospital fish jammies, waiting to go down to Pre-OP

In Pre-Op, waiting to be taken back to surgery

Just back from surgery.

Aaron plays Mario Cart while Tyler watches. This is what first calmed Tyler down after he got back from surgery.

Festivus

2008-03-31T11:02:00.004-05:00

This past Friday night we had a night filled with laughter and fun! Our church hosted an all-church event - Festivus! This was an adult-only evening, and consisted of a great dinner, followed up with a hilarious program and topped off with scrumcious dessert.

For this year's program, the planning committee put together an 8 member team of celebrities from the past. These 8 celebrities were divided into 2 teams of 4, to play on a game show, hosted by none other than Drew Carey. The game show was Guesstures, acted out by our pastors. The celberties were the guessors.

The teams consisted of the following:

Team 1:
Sonny
Cher
Lucille Ball
Rocky

Team 2:
Erkel
Cindy Lauper
Fonzie
Moses

The winners - Team 2. This evening was FULL OF LAUGHS! I have not laughed this hard in quite some time. GREAT TIMES!!!!

Erkel, Cher, Lucille Ball, Cindy Lauper - In the Dressing Room Before The Show

Lucy and Cher

Sonny and Cher

Restaurante Kahl

2008-03-01T13:41:00.002-06:00

Posting these a little late, but I have to put them up because they are too fun! Our Valentine's Day festivities consisted of a trip to Grandma and Grandpa Kahl's house to create Restaurante Kahl.

The Place: Restaurante Kahl

The Guests: Grandma and Grandpa

The Service: Provided by Tyler and Makenna Kahl

The Menu: Jello Jigglers for appetizer, Salad, Bread, Monicatti, and a Chocolate Rasberry Torte for dessert

Tyler was an outstanding server! Makenna....she provided more of the during dinner snuggles. Is that normal at a restaurant??? It was at ours!!!

A Productive Weekend

2008-02-27T08:41:00.003-06:00

This past weekend Don and Lois came for Aaron's game, and decided to stay for the start and completion of the toy room transformation! We painted, pulled up some old pink carpet, put some burbur carpet down, hung new bamboo blinds, and hung some really cute wall decals. Other than a few small details, the toy room is ready for playing!

Thanks for all of your help, Don and Lois!

Here are some pics...come on over and play!

Sending You Our Love

2008-02-14T09:13:00.004-06:00

On this Day of Love, we send ours to YOU! We wish you a day full of many hugs and kisses. Not just from a sweetheart, not just from your kids or grandkids, but from anyone who loves and cares for you in your everyday life!

I hope you can feel our hugs and kisses to you...sending them via internet! YEAH for techonology. :)

With Much Love from the Kahls - XOXOXOXOXOXO

Famous?

2008-02-06T08:20:00.000-06:00

It's true...we are famous in town. BUT, it is not for what you might think. Nope....it's for being one of the sickliest families to live in Mitchell, SD.

True story....

Yesterday, when driving through the Pharmacy window at Walgreens, the Pharmacist came over to explain the medication that I was picking up for Tyler. Then....she looked out the window, and stopped, saying, "Oh...this is old hat for you guys. I see you guys all the time, don't I? You guys sure do get sick a lot." YEP! She says, "I'm sorry". YEP...me too!

What I am most sorry about...is that we have lived in Mitchell for six months and the pharmacist not only recognizes us now, but a PHARMACIST...someone who sees a lot of sick people, made the comment, "You guys sure do get sick a lot."

SERIOUSLY!!!! Sure would be nice to leave some other legacy in Mitchell other than that! On to wellness!!!! Health, happiness, and prosperity...yadda yadda yadda.

Don't worry, we'll stay away from you, and try to keep our germs to ourselves. Smiles to all!

Happy 1/31/08

2008-01-31T07:52:00.001-06:00

The only reason that I am posting the following is because....I think that all of you Kahl blog readers are going to think this is soooo funny.

The video you are about to view, is an actual and true picture of our morning that started with similar impact at 6am. It has continued on to the current time of 8am. Also note, the Tyler you see in the video, is not consistent throughout the morning. Though, always at the same noise level, the mood changes from happy to sad in a matter of seconds, due to a lovely 102 fever. The Kenna you see in the video...she has been consistent, unchanging, etc. etc. etc.

Now for your viewing pleasure, we present - Happy 1/31/08 starring Tyler and Makenna Kahl

*****You may want to pause the music at the bottom of the blog page, before starting the video. (Sorry about how dark it is....you really only need the sound anyway)****

As for me....I am just praying that I make it through the day without a severe headache. The combination of loud banging symbols and screaming/crying following me around each corner, has caused the development of some slight twinging in my head....I think it's an Advil kind of day!

Happy 1/31/08!!!!!

The Joys of Winter

2008-01-28T12:17:00.000-06:00

What a beautiful weekend! We HAD to play outside. Yesterday afternoon, we ventured to Inwood to hang out with Grandma and Grandpa Kahl. While at their house, we enjoyed the great joys of winter....sledding, snowballs, snow angels, and snowmen!!!

The sledding proved to be quite the adventure. I wish that I had a movie of it, because my recap will not do it justice! But, here it goes:

Tyler was lovin' up his sledding time. Each time down the hill, his sled would stop about 15 feet shy of the electric fence going down into the pasture. UNTIL....Grandpa Don brought out the old orange sled. The sled....plain, simple, light-weight plastic...AND ORANGE...Tyler's favorite color. Tyler could not wait to take it down the hill. Grandpa Don gave him a send off, "5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1 - blast off," with a gigantic shove. Tyler flew down the hill, and PAST the 15 feet where he usually stops. Tyler's face - into the pasture fence (luckily not on). After the fence in face, Tyler quickly laid back on the sled....AND.....the whole sled with a laying Tyler, went UNDER the fence, and down into the pasture. Laying Tyler continued to accelerate down into the ravine and was now SCREAMING. I was laughing soooo hard (terrible mother), and Grandpa Don (the hero), was dashing down into the pasture to try to catch the rocketing orange sledder. Tyler eventually rolled off the sled, and Grandpa caught up to him.

We discovered Tyler's biggest fear as he was cruising down the pasture, was that the cows were going to eat him! That was the end of sledding! :)

Tyler recovered, and we moved on to snowballs, snow angels, and Tyler's first ever SnowMan, which he named the very original.....Frosty.

It was a fun-filled afternoon, for sure!

Tyler's First Snowman - Frosty

Tyler Scooping Snow with Great Grandpa Helmer - From beginning of January

Let's Count the Ways....

2008-01-24T09:18:00.000-06:00

Tis basketball season. Basketball is on the brain at our house...especially for one little man who already has an athletic passion deep within.

When you think of a basketball game, you probably think of a wooden or outdoor court, 10 human players, hoops and nets, etc. Tyler has taken the game of basketball to a whole new level. This boy can see basketball in ANYTHING......well, almost anything. If there are enough pieces for two teams, he can make a basketball game out of them. Yesterday alone, we had 5 different types of basketball games that occurred at our house - only one of those being with our actual hoop.

I have captured some of the means by which the games occur.....

PlayDough Basketball

Note Orange Team vs. the Blue Team - I believe in this game, the orange team won....orange is his favorite color

Play Food Basketball

Note- Red team vs. Green team. This game occurs several times a day. Yesterday he informed me that the Ice Cream was not on the team, because the Ice Cream is a Volleyball coach. OK.

Mealtime Basketball

This is my least favorite!!! Doesn't matter what we have had to eat...when Tyler is finished eating, the leftover food on his plate becomes his basketball team. Here is the game with macoroni.

Those are just three of the teams that live in our house. There are many more. Yesterday, we also had PegBoard basketball, and regular old basketball in his hoop.

If there are pieces....it CAN become a team!

Team Kahl Takes 50th Victory This Season

2008-01-20T16:06:00.000-06:00

The Kahl basketball team continued their winning record with a big win at their home gym on Sunday, January 20. The Kahls rallied with their opponent for most of the first half. With only 5 minutes remaining in the half, Makenna Kahl was benched with 3 fouls. But, at 3:20 remaining in the first half, Tyler Kahl was fouled and sunk 2 free throws to put the team up 22 to 20. At half time, Team Kahl was well coached. They entered into the 2nd half of the game, highly charged.With countless layups by Tyler, inside shots by Makenna, and the team's intense defense, Team Kahl came away with a 80-50 victory over their opponent.

This victory brings Team Kahl 50 - 0 this season. Team Kahl will play at home again on Monday, January 21.

Article and Photographs: Amy Kahl

U - G - L - Y

2008-01-19T20:44:00.000-06:00

Last night I went to an Ugly Sweater Party. There was a vote for the ugliest....and I won (credit to my friend Trisha, who found it on the Thrift Store rack)! I won 2 tickets to the movie threater, and some yummy movie treats. YAHOO! After I modeled my UGLY sweater dress on the UGLY Sweater Runway, we had some time to play some games. Cranium is always a favorite of mine. Has anyone seen the latest Cranium??? It comes with the coolest little guys! It's almost as fun to change the hat and hair on the little guys as it is to play the game!

Woohoo....Lookin' Good. Ei Ei Ei!!!!

These are the COOLEST new little Cranium Guys!

Matt's Shirt wasn't a Sweater, but it certainly was U - G - L - Y!

Our Mitchell Home

2008-01-15T07:33:00.001-06:00

Many of you have been to visit us in Mitchell - seen our house, the town, etc. BUT, there have been several people lately that have not been here and have asked to see pictures of our house. For those of you that have been here, let the pictures bring memories of your visit(s)...they have been fun visits! For those of you who have not been here, let the pictures bring images of all the fun you could have if you came to visit. It sure is a fun place!!!! ;)

The Entryway - Welcome to Our Home

The Living Room - This is Where we Spend Lots and Lots of Time

The Dining Room - French Doors go to Deck and Backyard

The Kitchen - My Favorite Part of this House

The Kids' Room

Guest Bedroom - This is Where You Stay!

Master Bedroom

My Parents are Bloggers!!!

2007-12-31T08:54:00.000-06:00

It's the truth...Ray and Jill Kuntz have become bloggers. This blogging stuff is just way too much fun. In a protest against creating the Kuntz Family Christmas letter, my dad has decided that it will be much more fun to have a blog capturing the family events. Fun!

The question now becomes....will we see more than 1 update a year? The poll is out....

http://www.familykuntz.blogspot.com/

Merry Merry Christmas

2007-12-26T21:38:00.001-06:00

A Visit with Santa

Christmas Eve Family Photo

Christmas Eve - Crazy Cousins

Kisses for Mommy

A Visit from Great Grandma

Birthday Party with Buddies

Cousins Ready to Go Sledding

Cousins Sledding

We have been having a great and busy Christmas season. Above you can see some highlights of where we have been and what we have been up to.

Learning Lefse

2007-11-29T07:48:00.000-06:00

Aaron's Grandma Agnes has created a legacy in the Kahl family - she is a master lefse maker. Masterfully rolled into large, fine, thin lefse circles. Cooked to perfection on each side, and with a taste that melts in your mouth. MMMMMMM!!!!

This year, on the day after Thanksgiving, Lois and Elise allowed me to learn about lefse making, as we worked together to attempt lefse that would be even half as wonderful as Grandma Agnes' lefse. It was an adventure!!! I still have a lot of learning to do, but the end product sure is worth it. YUM!!!

This is after a little too much Lefse-making!!!!

Tough Guy

2007-11-28T07:17:00.000-06:00

Contrary to popular belief, Tyler did not get into a brawl with any of his little buddies. Though he has been learning to fight, like sword/boxing fighting, the black eye came as a topper to a long week and a half of sickness that was occurring between Tyler and Makenna. Tyler developed Optical Cellulitis, which gave him a complete black eye. He sure looked tough....

Great Friends = Good Times

2007-11-14T07:11:00.000-06:00

We are so blessed to have such amazing friends in our lives. Friends that have surrounded us in lifes ups and downs, and that we have been able to surround in the same way. Friends that we can laugh, cry and just be ourselves with.

Some of those friends came to visit us (for the 2nd time) this past weekend - Matt, Molly, and Luke Thomas! We had quite the busy busy weekend, and it was so fun!!!! Baby Luke is quite the little charmer....watch out world! Thanks for coming Thomas Family...we hope you come again soon!!!!

The Boys - Lookin' Good in their Blue and Brown Duds

Lukey - What a Sweet Sweet Boy

Aaron's First DWU Win

2007-11-13T12:38:00.000-06:00

The DWU girls had their first home game last Friday night - held at the Corn Palace. It was a win!!! Go DWU girls! It was fun to have Aaron's family and the Thomas family come to help cheer them on!!! We hope to have many more wins to come. You can follow the progress of the team, by clicking on the DWU Women's Basketball link to the right.

Go Tigers!

The Hills

2007-11-08T15:06:00.000-06:00

I'm a little late on this one, but, better late than never! Last weekend we traveled out to The Hills to watch Aaron's first bball games with DWU, and have a little adventure. Grandma and Grandpa Kahl joined the kids and I, and we sure had a fun time. We ventured the area, checked out the sites (that were open this late in the season), did some swimming, cheered loudly at bball games, and drove, drove drove. I am anxious to go back during "in-season" time, and spend more time out there. So much to see, and so beautiful. Here is a glimpse of a few things that we did while there. For details on the games, check out the DWU link to the right.

Riding the Dinosaurs with Grandpa - at Dinosaur Park

At Bear Country

Watching Daddy's first DWU bball game

DIZZY

2007-11-06T07:17:00.000-06:00

We have entered the stage of "Peat and Repeat", as my mom likes to call it. Makenna wants to repeat and attempt every last thing that Tyler does. Last night, Tyler started to spin in circles, AND, sure enough the brand new walker put her arms out, and a spinning she did go. She got SOOO dizzy. It was hilarious!!!

It's Official....

2007-11-01T08:48:00.001-05:00

SHE CAN WALK! At just shy of 17 months, Miss Makenna has finally decided to make walking her main mode of transportation. She's totting all over the house, carrying things all the while.

Trick or Treat

2007-10-31T21:20:00.000-05:00

Boy were we into Halloween around here this year! "How about 5 more houses, mom?"....I heard that line 4 different times. We were out Trick-O-Treating for 1 hour. I loved going out wiht my little football player and ladybug!

Pumpkin Carving

2007-10-30T21:30:00.001-05:00

Tonight we carved Pumpkins...fun fun fun - messy messy messy. Kenna kept eating the pumpkin slime - yum! Memories were made!!!

Scoopin' it out

Goopy pumpkin gunk - Kenna's gonna eat it!

All scooped out - let's get carving

A job well done!

Operation Christmas Child

2007-10-30T21:10:00.000-05:00

It sure is fun participating in Operation Christmas Child when a child is old enough to understand, and get excited about it! Tyler was so excited to go to the store and pick out items for these children. As we were putting the boxes together, Kenna would continue to unpack the boxes, and Tyler would repremand her, "Kenna, NO, these are not for us. They are for other children that do not have as much as us." What a great morning together!

Packing the boxes with the items the kids picked out

Boxes are complete!

And to finish it off.....a little love - Tyler-style

Little House on the Prairie

2007-10-26T14:43:00.000-05:00

There are many awesome things about living in South Dakota. It is filled with a lot of history. Last weekend, my family came to visit, and we ventured to De Smet, SD, home of the Ingalls Family. Contrary to what many of us have learned from the TV show, the Ingalls family, spent most of their lives in De Smet, SD, not Walnut Grove, MN. We had an awesome time learning all about the actual adventures and life of the Ingalls family, and all left wanting to read all of Laura's books right now! Check out some of what we saw....

This is the actual schoolhouse that the Ingalls children went to school at.

Kenna is sitting in front of a replica of the first schoolhouse Laura taught in.

These kids could not understand that THIS was the way that people got places...not in cars.

This is my favorite...Prairie Kids - Laura, Grace, and Willie - That's who they thought they were

More history to come in the next couple weeks. We are headed out to "The Hills" - kind of like of Minnesotans say "The Cities" - next weekend for Aaron's first basketball tournament.

Praise Band

2007-10-25T14:38:00.000-05:00

This is our life...loud banging, funky baby dancing, and lots of praise band singing/playing. Watch out, these kids are up-and-coming stars! Bet you wish you could be in our band too?!